Thursday, 14 December 2017

On Patronage

For about a year and a half now, I've benefitted from the modest support of a profile on Patreon. I'm glad it's there. For one, without my Patreon backers, I couldn't have reviewed quite as many films as I have. Last week, Patreon decided to ramp up its fees for contributors. The result of that was that many, many supporters across the board jumped ship, so much so that Patreon reversed the decision. But it didn't bring the supporters back. As a creator with only a modest support and a Patreon I've neglected, I decided that it was time to start figuring out how to improve things. So from now on, patrons get to see my writing posts before anyone else, and I'm asking support for the work I've done rather than a general monthly subscription (so think of it as a regular tip jar that keeps my work going), which means that in quiet months, I won't ask for so much cash. The new model begins with the next post I do, and if you're supporting me already and you're thinking, this isn't what I signed up for, that's OK, there's no rancour involved.

If you don't want to support me financially (even if it's just the occasional quid), that's OK too. I'm going to post everything here eventually – just, after the patrons see it. It'll encourage me to be more circumspect with my work anyway, and more careful about saving it.

If you can spare a few quid every so often, please feel free to help me out. But even if you can't, thanks for coming here. My blog's readership has grown from me knowing the names of everyone who read it back in 2015 to me seeing hundreds and occasionally thousands of people visiting.

And I'm grateful for every reader I have, every share, every bit of support I receive.